Who is Chase Oliver, the US activist running for the Libertarian Party in the Election 2024?

You know Donald Trump and you know Kamala Harris, but you may have overlooked Chase Oliver, this year’s Libertarian nominee running for president of the United States of America.

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The Libertarian Party is known for promoting small government and civil liberties. They tend to win around 1% of the national vote and have never won more than 3.3% of the national vote. A third-party candidate has almost no chance of winning the U.S. presidential election, but Oliver doesn‘t care. Rather than looking to win the race or spoil it, Oliver, who describes himself as “armed and gay” is hoping to bring new ideas to an old Libertarian ideology.

Who is Chase Oliver?

Oliver is a 39-year-old political activist, sales account executive, and HR representative. He received the presidential nomination for the Libertarian Party on May 26, 2024 and is the only openly gay candidate. He will appear on the ballots in 47 states, including every important swing state

His ideals are a mix of the extreme right and left, supporting abortion rights and opposing gun restrictions. As a Libertarian, Oliver embodies the positions they typically take - prison reform, anti-involvement of the U.S. in global wars, and an end to mass surveillance.

“Unlike my two opponents, who focus on using the power of government to solve the problems - which ends up creating more problems - or using the power of government to push their viewpoints onto others, Libertarians are different. We seek to reduce the power of government and empower individual people to make their own choices in life, with regards to the education their kids receive and the medical choices they make,” said Oliver. “We want to remove government’s impact on our lives as much as possible.”

Here’s where he stands on some important issues:

Abortion

Oliver is pro-choice, but against taxpayer funding for abortion clinics.

Guns

Oliver supports the Second Amendment and the “right to protect yourself from violence”. He says that mass shootings are a mental health issue. He does not believe in gun bans but puts the responsibility on parents to watch for signs in their own children and prevent them from obtaining access to guns without supervision. He even went so far as to say people should be able to purchase a rocket launcher so long as they don’t intend to hurt someone with it.

Economy

Oliver supports free trade, returning to the gold standard, and ending the Federal Reserve. He opposes tariffs and believes the government and “special interests” should not dictate how people spend their money.

Foreign Policy

Oliver supports a foreign policy “based on peace” and promises to bring all American troops home if he wins the presidency. He promotes a non-interventionist policy, shutting down military bases and foreign aid, and has criticized both President Joe Biden and Donald Trump for their foreign policies, calling them “authoritarians”. He says that he would end all support to both Israel and Ukraine, saying, “we should not be contributing to extending the fight.”

Immigration

Oliver believes in simplifying the immigration process to make it easier and faster for people to come to the U.S. and start working and integrating.

“This is a process that should take, at most, days – not months or years.”